We don’t really know much more than what’s in the headline: Kawasaki is releasing a couple new 125s in the next year—a naked bike and a sport bike.
The naked bike is expected to be an update of the current Z125 model. What exactly that will entail remains to be seen. If Kawasaki introduces a liquid-cooled 125 engine for the new baby Ninja, and also drops that engine into a minibike chassis, it would have a more interesting bike than either the current Z125 or Honda Grom models (the Grom is the only real competitor).
As for the baby Ninja, we wouldn’t expect to see it in Canada, as it’s the kind of machine that’s far more appreciated in overseas markets, but we could be wrong; Honda’s CBR125 sold well here over the years, before it was eclipsed by the 250 and 300 versions. Could a Ninja 125 re-ignite the miniature sportbike market? Frankly, a lot of that depends on insurance companies, the price of gas, and the anti-motorcycle policies of Quebec’s provincial government, which alone have done more to sell small bikes in Canada than anything else.
